Smart Meter Market Expected to Reach $29.8 Billion by 2026

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Boosted by growing demand for water management and energy efficiency, the smart meter market is expected to hit $29.8 billion by 2026, according to ReportLinker.

Electricity smart meters will lead the way, growing by more than 7% annually and reaching $17.7 billion, according to the report. Smart water meters are expected to have the greatest annual growth, hitting 8.4% CAGR over the next seven-year period.

Smart meters are becoming a sought-after tool to manage energy use and cut costs. More government incentives and regulations have also pushed implementation of the meters into commercial buildings, according to the report.

The meters can also help reliability of grids by monitoring consumption and usage patterns and also help predict outages or other problems.

The smart meter market is especially strong un the United States, and ReportLinker says the market was estimated to be $20.5 billion in the country in 2021. The US accounts for nearly a third of the overall market, especially with the country focused on implementing smart grids and cities. ReportLinker says the US also has an extensive use of the technology in an effort to increase resiliency and reliability of the power supply.

Smart meters currently serve nearly 65% of all US electric customers, according to Guidehouse Insights, and that number is expected to reach 90% by 2028. In addition to the installation of smart meters, Guidehouse says spending on analytics of the smart devices will grow by 13% over the next decade.

The Energy Information Administration says there are more than 12.1 million electric smart meters in use for commercial, industrial and transportation purposes in the US.

China’s smart meter market is expected to grow at more than 12% through 2026 and reach $17 billion. Japan and Canada are forecast to grow at 8% and 9% each year, respectively. The Asia-Pacific region is expected to see significant growth due to a rapid expansion into commercial and industrial segments as well as a new focus on developing smart grids.

ReportLinker says smart water meters are seeing increased demand in part driven by stricter rollouts of government regulations.

Water infrastructure has lagged in the US, getting a D in the 2021 American Society of Civil Engineers report card. The EPA began distributing billions of dollars late in 2021 in water infrastructure funds as part of the US’s $1 trillion infrastructure bill.

A report by Banyan Water shows automation and machine learning could save millions of gallons in water waste and money. Platforms like Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure Automation Expert can help water treatment plants safeguard water, increase sustainability and cut facilities’ electric costs.

Smart gas meters were also analyzed by ReportLinker and are expected to hit $8.6 billion by 2026.